The 2023 LDP SUMMIT

The annual conference for professionals who manage or support early career talent development programs. Invest in YOUR professional development at the 12th annual LDP Summit in Pittsburgh, PA on May 10 &11, 2023.

Why attend the LDP Summit?

Click the video above to hear what others have to say.

THE ANNUAL LDP SUMMIT

The LDP Summit is the annual opportunity to connect and share with other professionals working to build and improve early career talent development programs. See below for agenda information from past conferences. We were back in-person with 130 colleagues in Minneapolis in May 2022 for two wonderful days of sharing and connecting. The 2023 LDP Summit will be held in Pittsburgh on May 10-11. Click the button below to register. Capture the Early Bird rate through January 31st, 2023.

With the support of

Learn about past attendees

“Congratulations on hosting a fantastic Summit. While I had hopes for what I would learn and take away, this surpassed my expectations.”

Bill Langner, Becton Dickinson

LDP Connect is recognized by SHRM to offer Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification activities.

The use of this official seal confirms that this Activity has met HR Certification Institute’s® (HRCI®) criteria for recertification credit pre-approval.

2023 SUMMIT AGENDA

May 10th & 11th, 2023

(Under construction)

Pre-Conference Workshop: Tuesday, May 9th, 2023 (separate registration fee)

12:00 pm

Pre-Conference Workshop: How to Build (or Re-Build) a Quality Early Talent Development Program

Newly offered in 2023 due to popular request! Getting a program started on the right footing can make all the difference between success and trouble. With the LDP Connect maturity model as a backdrop, this half-day workshop will get you focused on the key foundational questions to setting up and running an impactful (and measurable) early talent development program. With an emphasis on clarifying your program’s goals, you’ll be guided through considering proper program structure, curriculum design, and community building among stakeholders. If you’re new to the world of early talent development programs, or if you’re looking to re-vamp an existing program that may need recalibration, don’t miss this workshop. Facilitated by early talent development expert [insert] at Wronski Associates – a firm with 40 years of experience building and running early talent programs.

Main Conference Day 1: Wednesday, May 10th, 2023

7:45 am

Breakfast & Networking

8:15 am

Welcome & Introductions

8:30 am

Opening Keynote

Author and Speaker on Organizational Change Dynamics

Dr. Kelvin McCree

Leading from the Middle: How to Influence from Where You Are

Dr. Kelvin McCree is a globally recognized thought leader, six-time author, and international speaker on change management, mental agility and cultivating an agile workforce. His work is focused on helping teams to thrive in the midst of disruption. His ground-breaking new book “The Pivot: Leading the Future of Work” tackles the trends, trajectories, challenges and opportunities in the changing workforce. In this keynote session, “Leading from the Middle,” Dr. Kelvin will address a common challenge for development program leaders – influencing without authority. As we build and manage our programs’ community of supporters, we rely on the willing cooperation of colleagues from the C-suite down to the earliest entry-level employees. How do we build loyalty, inspire decision-making, and influence direction without the power to issue orders? Start your conference with clear strategies and concrete action steps to unlock the leader within!

9:30 am

Networking Break

9:45 am

Concurrent Session 1A

Early Talent Manager at Bose Corporation

Becky Gavin

Launching a Program Alumni Summit: A Step Toward Stronger Community

LDP Survey data have consistently shown a strong positive correlation between a program’s strength of community and its performance level. Some program managers are finding that holding an annual event is a powerful way to build community among program alumni, and to keep alumni connected to the program. But launching such an event can be daunting. Who gets to go? What will attendees do? Who will pay for it and how will you measure success? Becky Gavin – Early Talent Manager at Bose Corporation – launched an alumni summit for North America in 2022 whose success inspired plans to make the event a standard element of Bose’s development program community. Join this session to hear about Becky’s journey through conception, approval and evaluation – and for guidance on how to follow a similar path.

Concurrent Session 1B

Early Talent Partner at BD

Tyler Switsky

A Feedback-Driven Approach to Rotation-matching and Off-boarding

All programs have some sort of system for matching participants to rotations, and to eventual jobs post-program. But many program managers would agree that the word “system” in this context implies more structure and intentionality than actually exists. Are we driving the matching process or simply holding it together? In this session, Tyler Switsky, Early Talent Partner at BD, will dive into how his team has improved rotation matching by getting closer to the participant, systematically incorporating his/her feedback, and approaching the process more strategically. Take a look at an improved rotation matching process in action, and participate in a broader group discussion about best-practices in this important phase of our programs.

10:45 am

Networking Break

11:00 am

Concurrent Session 2A

Manager, Business Immersion Program at Crown Castle

Kimberly Faust

Global Operations Leadership Development Program Manager at J&J

Dylan Gallagher

Director, Enterprise Leadership Development at Cigna

Natasha Hepburn

Panel: Participants to Program Managers - Insights from the Journey from Labor to Management

A change in perspective can make all the difference. While we work hard to maintain alignment between our participants’ goals and our own as program managers, sometimes we just don’t get what they are thinking! What advances could we make if did? What problems could we avoid? In this session, we’ll meet and chat with former LDP participants who have become the manger of the program they completed. What has a change in perspective led them to better understand about the programs they manage? What gaps of understanding do they now recognize between participants and managers, having walked in both sets of shoes? What wisdom can they share on the participant’s perspective that might help us better connect and align with our participants. Join the discussion!

Concurrent Session 2B

Senior Manager, Finance Talent Development at CVS Health

Dani Noyes

Tying the Knot: Developing an Alumni Relations Strategy for your Early Talent Program

How accountable should we feel for our alumni’s continued growth post-program? While our program’s fortunes are linked to alumni success, there are limits to what we can reasonably offer beyond program. As attrition rates grow, it might be time to think more strategically about our program’s relationship with its alumni. Join Dani Noyes – Senior Manager, Finance Talent Development at CVS Health – for a look at how CVS developed a new alumni relations strategy for graduates of its FLDP. What’s the right mix and type of engagement and continued professional development? How do we manage expectations? How do we think strategically about tightening the bond between program and alumni so that all participants benefit?

12:00 pm

Lunch

1:00 pm

Community Interactive Session

Topic Tables: ‘Idea Snack” discussions

The landscape of managing early talent pipeline programs has changed dramatically over the past twelve months. The best help we get is from each other. What is your most pressing challenge as you navigate the new environment? Where do you need ideas, guidance or validation from your peers? Choose from several “topic tables” for open group discussion in this interactive community session. Stay with the same group, or pop in and out of these moderated intimate chats. Leave with ideas and confidence.

2:15 pm

Networking Break

2:30 pm

Concurrent Session 3A

Vice President, Leadership Programs & Early Career at Synchrony

Vince Bond

What would You do with Better Assignment Managers?

What’s your relationship with your assignment managers? Would you consider them locked-in supporters of your program, or does it sometimes feel like they need more professional development than your participants? So much depends on the strength of our assignment managers: their prowess as a developer of people, and how aligned they are with our program’s mission. In this session, Vince Bond – Vice President, Leadership & Early Career at Synchrony – will take you through Synchrony’s recent initiative to invest in building community among its Business Leadership Program assignment managers. Hear how creating a space where assignment managers can help each other has led to a stronger cadre of reliable support from the business, better development for both manager and participant, and better outcomes overall.

Concurrent Session 3B

MyNextSeason

Speaker TBD

Optimizing Career-Pathing to Improve Retention in Early Talent Programs

If variety is the spice of life, then flexibility is the key to retention. Exit data continues to affirm the #1 reason people leave companies is (perceived, or real) lack of growth opportunities. Does your early talent program offer multiple possible destinations, or are your participants on the railroad to “one size fits all”? If your program offers variety, how aware are your participants of the possibilities? Defining transparent career paths for our participants could be the way we satisfy their evolving career interests and keep them from looking for greener pastures. This session will explore career pathing through a behavioral science lens and provide insights and actions companies can take to improve development and retention of young talent.

3:30 pm

Networking Break

3:45 pm

Rapid Fire Session

Program Management Topics

A popular LDP Summit tradition. Participant volunteers share a best practice, learning or challenge with the audience in 7 minutes or less. A quick exchange of actionable ideas on program management to take home.

Rapid Fire Session

Recruiting Topics

5:00 pm

Evening Reception

Main Conference, Day 2: Thursday, May 11th, 2023

8:00 am

Breakfast & Networking

8:30 am

Opening Plenary

Speaker TBD

TBD

(Summary description coming)

9:30 am

Networking Break

9:45 am

Concurrent Session 4A

ReadyNow® Business Director at Otsuka Pharmaceutical

Rob Jindal

Making the Grade: Curriculum Choices in Times of Change

Your program’s curriculum is one of its defining components. There are lots of choices to make about content, delivery and measurement; and while last year’s choices may have seemed to fit the business needs like a glove, it may be “loosening up” as the business evolved. How can you create a system for properly recalibrating your curriculum? Join Rob Jindal, Business Director of Otsuka pharmaceuticals’ ReadyNow® pharmaceutical development program, for an iterative journey through building relevant curriculum. What are the hard choices? How do you know if it’s working? When is it time to change?

Concurrent Session 4B

Dell Technologies

Speaker TBD

Retention through Expanding Career Perspective: Fostering a focus on career enablement

Many new hires join our programs because we promise them a high-touch, structured development experience. The participants enjoy the comfort of that promise on their first day as we immediately funnel them into our onboarding process, place them into a quality role, provide them a mentor and incorporate them in a program for accelerated growth. As gratifying as this direct attention can be to the participant, how well are we articulating that the near-term experiences of the program exist primarily to enable their long-term-career progression at our company? Join us for a look at Dell’s recent efforts at bringing an increased focus to long-term career progression among its program associates. Learn the metrics they used to understand their challenge, the initiatives developed to meet that challenge, and the results achieved.

10:45 am

Networking Break

11:00 am

Concurrent Session 5A

Manager, Talent Programs at Comcast

Kelly Crane

Off-Boarding: The End of the Journey or the Beginning?

Given the investments made in your participants, and risks associated with transition points in-program, it’s important to make sure your off-boarding process bonds your recent graduate to the company. Participants need an appropriate place to “land” – one that feels like a strong continuation of their career journey. But the more control we assume over the process, the less accountability we pass to the participants. What is the proper level of support in the off-boarding process, and how to we empower program graduates by delivering both useful guidance and a strong sense of ownership? Join Comcast for a discussion of the core issues they recently navigated in working out a new off-boarding process, including matching, support level, managing expectations and defining a career journey. Whether your off-boarding process is highly prescriptive or completely hands off, this session is a chance to take a deeper look at whether your approach is supporting your objectives.

Concurrent Session 5B

Speaker TBD

TBD

(Summary description coming)

12:00 pm

Lunch

1:00 pm

Breakout Session 5A

Facilitated Small Group Discussion

Senior Practitioners’ Meeting – Moving Forward Together

If you have oversight over multiple development programs at your organization, join your peers at this facilitated forum on big-picture strategic issues in early career development and programming. Participants will spend most of their time examining select topics in small groups and then briefly share conclusions/observations with the larger group. Topics will include early career talent management in the workforce of the future, proper program calibration and alignment with strategy, and other topics determined by participants in advance. The objective is to connect senior practitioners and generate useful strategic ideas.

1:00 pm

Breakout Session 5B

Facilitated Small Group Discussion

Functional “Club” Roundtables

LDP Connect often get requests from our members for more opportunities to meet and speak with people managing programs similar to thier own. Functional “Club” Roundtables are the live equivalent of the virtual “Club” calls we’ve been holding since the Fall of 2021. Bring your questions and expertise to a group of your peers on running development programs like yours. Our best ideas, solutions and relationships come from these informal conversations.

2:00 pm

Networking Break

2:15 pm

Manager of Continuous Improvement at J.M. Smucker Company

Dr. Matt Lebeck

Do Your Participants Welcome Feedback? Building Self-Awareness and Comfort with Critique

To seek out potential criticism is not a natural, comfortable act, yet our development programs depend on delivering a healthy portion of it in regular, “constructive” doses. Self-awareness is the starting point of professional growth and feedback is the key. But have we properly prepared our participants for a steady diet of feedback, both positive and negative? Many of our program participants are high achievers and have had limited exposure to failure. What if they resist critique? In fact, how prepared are we to hear, embrace and act upon commentary about our own performance? Dr. Matt Lebeck, Manager of Continuous Improvement at The J.M. Smucker Company (and popular past LDP Summit speaker) will lead us into how Smucker’s developed a cultural desire to receive feedback. Learn about how to encourage critique in the politest of work environments, building self-awareness and jump-starting team trust and growth.